


The human who cried on the pier

by Galrafloofandlove



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: And only mentioned, Bittersweet Ending, F/M, Human!Romelle, Major Character Injury, Mer!Hunk, Orphan Keith (Voltron), Orphan Romelle, Romelle and Keith are siblings, to shiro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-04
Updated: 2019-06-04
Packaged: 2020-04-08 00:39:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19096210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Galrafloofandlove/pseuds/Galrafloofandlove
Summary: He knew going up to the surface was a bad idea.He’d been told as such since he was a little guppy- too little to swim, fins far too weak to propel him anywhere.It was lectured to them everywhere they went. From posters lining the gravel paths of their cities, to signs hanging high and proud with some new slogan to get mers to mindlessly agree that the surface was not a place for them.Hunk, however, knew otherwise.





	The human who cried on the pier

**Author's Note:**

> My artist's work is [Here!](https://shae-c-art.tumblr.com/post/185371432716/made-for-the-cutiepiehunkbang-with)

He knew going up to the surface was a bad idea. 

He’d been told as such since he was a little guppy- too little to swim, fins far too weak to propel him anywhere.  
It was lectured to them everywhere they went. From posters lining the gravel paths of their cities, to signs hanging high and proud with some new slogan to get mers to mindlessly agree that the surface was not a place for them. 

Hunk, however, knew otherwise. 

He had been seven the first time he ventured up. He had been tossing up a seashell he found on the floor, distracting himself while his parents cooked dinner. He was starving, so a simple, innocent game to avert his attention away from the growling of his stomach seemed harmless enough.  
Until he threw the seashell up, up, up…

...and it didn’t come back down.

He was naive at such a young age, so he simply swam up to try and catch the rogue shell, unknowing of how close he had actually gotten to the top of the water.  
His little fins moved through the water with determination when he saw the shell in a stand-still, chubby little fingers grabbing the shell once it was in his reach.  
And a tiny strand of his chocolate brown hair popped out of the water onto the surface, chilly as the cold air struck him. 

He had been terrified after realizing what he had actually done, after the fact when he was eating his mother’s perfectly cooked and seasoned seaweed.  
He was paranoid for nearly a year that somebody would find out, that somebody saw him go out of the water, even for a second. 

But that fear faded when it sunk in that nobody saw him, and nobody would ever know. 

 

So there was totally zero harm in doing it again. 

Everytime he rested his elbows against the muddy ground on the water’s shore, a part of his mind was screaming at him to stop, that something absolutely terrible would occur and he’d ruin his life forever from a few simple mistakes.  
And At nineteen, he’d be forced to own up to his wrongdoings. 

But he could never convince himself to stop, no matter how much he went back and forth. 

Because the stars were beautiful with a clear view. They shone with unspoken dreams, like little secrets that he knew everybody had. They glittered, some even shot across the sky. The moon was even better, when Hunk was able to see it. It was full and glowing, shining down on the water’s edge and drowning him in gentle light in the darkness. The weeds near the shoreline weren’t as desirable, but Hunk still appreciated them. They were so much different than the bland seaweed he was used to. Whenever a gust of wind hit, they would sway like dancers eager to perform their show. He had picked one up, once, but instead of dancing for him it blew away and left him. Maybe this wasn’t where their show happened, maybe their stage was set on a luxurious beach somewhere instead of a scummy lake.  
Everytime he rose to the surface, algae stuck to his face and hair. He had to spend at least ten minutes every time just to remove it so he would be seen as suspicious to anybody back in the city.  
It was trouble risking everything he had just to get some fresh air, just to be able to see the world that was forbidden to him and so many others for no good reason. 

All the warnings about the surface hurting you or the outside world being a warzone just wasn’t true. It was a peaceful place, with trees towering high and flowers nobody underwater could even dream of. 

Everything was beautiful, but it was a sacrifice. 

Like most things worth having…

It was a hazard. 

Everything was a hazard. 

~~~~~~

“Pull your head out of the seaweed!” Lance scolded once Hunk came back to the ocean floor. 

Lance’s hair was always in his face while swimming, and yet Lance absolutely refused to cut it or put it in a ponytail holder as Hunk did. Even their best friend, Pidge had cut her locks off just to make life easier, but Lance was stuck in his own ways.  
“My head is completely clear.” Hunk argued, petting the soft scales on one of Pidge’s fish buddies.  
“You’re going up to the surface!” Lance exclaimed, and if Pidge’s lab wasn’t soundproof Hunk would have been arrested on the spot.  
“Shut up, I’m working.” Pidge didn’t even look up from her workbench to scoff at them.  
“Pidge, you have to be on my side here. He’s insane!” Lance kept shouting like he had never even heard of an inside voice.  
“I do not take sides after the seasoning debate.” Pidge gritted her teeth at the remembrance of a heated argument that almost tore them all apart.  
“That wasn't even a debate. Salt was, and will always be the better seasoning for seaweed. Cooked, fried or raw.” Lance scoffed, folding his arms across his chest and causing his sky blue fins to catch on tan skin.  
“You eat seaweed raw?” Pidge looked at Lance, her own forest green tail swishing gently in the water in silent disgust.  
“We've had this discussion before.” Hunk signed, bubbles forming from how fast Lance's tail was moving at the completely true accusations.  
“I do not eat it raw anyway.” Lance claimed, anger rising at the other's relentless teasing.  
“I thought Allura ever saw you eating it.” Pidge playfully scoffed before turning on a machine, filling the small room with a the deafening sound of a drill.

Lance's face grew as red as the coral that only existed a few cities away. 

“I think that's enough.” Hunk decided, voice firm and commanding. The problem with their friend group happened to be that Pidge and Lance didn't know when to stop teasing each other, which often ended with long fights that dragged on for weeks without end. He was in charge of knowing when one member had had enough and needed to be left alone. 

Hunk swore without him the group would crumble into nothingness, as egotistical as that sounds. Pidge and Lance were friends on their own, just the constant bickering seemed to get to them at some point. And sometimes, they both just needed a break. 

Hunk understands. 

It's the reason he goes up to the surface, after all. 

The surface gives him a break from the harsh realities of the underwater world. The politics, the issues, the trouble everybody has on a daily basis just because they were forced to live in hiding. 

Lance huffed. 

“Fine.” He said, in that tone that told Hunk he was going to get scolded later because Lance knows the second Hunk leaves he's swimming up to the surface. 

In Lance's defense, he wasn't wrong at all. 

Pidge just shrugged it off, not caring much at all. She didn't really hold grudges, unless her friends or family was hurt.  
Then the grudges were heavy and never, ever dropped. 

Hunk let out a quick sigh of relief. 

“I'm going downtown. I need a snack.” Lance announced, turning around and reaching for the door handle.  
The second he left, Pidge started to giggle loudly. 

When Hunk shot her a glance, the only thing she had to say was, “He totally eats seaweed raw.” 

Hunk's lips curved up into a grin as he left Pidge's house. 

~~~~~~

The air was cooler above the surface. 

Underwater, it was either boiling or freezing. It had been scolding hot when Hunk woke up, but it slowly lowered itself back down to a bearable temperature. Merpeoples’ blood is supposed to adjust based on what the temperature was in their environment, but the lake area they lived in was so unpredictable, causing everything to be flipped upside down most days. Too hot one minute, freezing the other.  
The lake wasn’t the ideal place to settle a city in, and many times Hunk wondered why his ancestors chose such a place. He had a theory that since the area wasn’t crowded by humans and was mostly isolated, it was simply so they had a lower chance of being discovered.  
His ancestors loved safety, he figured. Love to restrict what their citizens can and can’t do, where they’re allowed to go and where’s off limits. 

They liked control. 

Control of everything and everyone. 

And that same system was still set firmly in place to this day. 

The air above the surface, however, differed greatly from the temperature of under the water. It was almost always chilly, the wind blowing ever so slowly, just enough to make Hunk shiver.  
But it was quiet, and peaceful, and calming. It was everything Hunk needed in life, to be completely honest. 

Large pine trees rose high above the Hunk’s vision, evergreens staying grounded no matter how hard the wind blew.  
The grainy sand that only appeared right on the very edge of the water, before fading into a landscape with weeds and tree trunks littering the view and covering the area from any prying eyes.  
It depended on how you saw the area. Hunk loved it, but it was also the only glimpse of the world above that he ever got. So, maybe to the average human, it would be subpar. 

Termite-bitten wood formed into an old pier a few feet from the shore, only standing by equally damaged wooden pillars under the water and sunken into the soft sand and weeds entracing them. Hunk knew for a fact that pier would collapse soon- he used to believe that if anybody sat on the edge of the pier, it would fall apart and dunk the unfortunate soul underwater. 

Keyword here is “used to”. 

Now that there was the quiet sound of tears being shed in the distance, Hunk looked over to the pier and saw a blurry figure, sitting still and seemingly crying into their knees.  
The blur was an even mix of red and bright blonde, but they never mixed into any kind of orange. The colors were right next to each other, and yet they stayed separate.  
Hunk’s curiosity got the better of him. He slowly swam towards them, making sure he kept his fins under the bleary water. He didn’t know if they’d be like those in the stories he read as a child- evil humans who only wanted fame for finding a mermaid, and they’d do anything to get them out of the water and into the surface. 

He didn’t want to find out what would happen if he showed his fins immediately. Those stories scarred him as a child, and they still frighten him when he thinks back on them. In the back of his mind, he was aware they were only stories and fictional, but at the same time he had been taught from a young age that those stories were real and would happen to anybody who dared travel up to the surface. 

Suddenly, the bright colored blur stood up quickly and faded out of Hunk’s vision, disappearing into the evergreens without giving another sound or a word. It didn’t acknowledge Hunk, only moving away and into the depths of the forest and back into human civilization.  
For some reason, Hunk felt like he was obligated to follow them. Which was...stupid, albeit, because he had no clue who they even were. Trying to find out was stupid, too, because his mind just keeps flashing back to those old children’s stories meant to inflict fear and terror for the surface.  
But they were gone, and there was nothing Hunk could do to change that fact. 

He frowned and solemnly dipped back under the water, clouding his vision to the surface under the lake. 

He yearned to return, but Lance would start to grow worried after he was gone so long. 

He swam back down to the underwater city, grateful that the water would do its job and hide the tears beading at the corners of his eyes. 

~~~~~~

Lance had his arms crossed angrily in the kitchen of their shared house when Hunk returned. 

The second he entered the threshold, Lance turned to face him with the signature glance present in his eyes, the usually ocean blue turning into a darker shade. 

“You went up to the surface again.” Not a question, not a fact either. Just a statement that Lance felt he had to say.  
Hunk sighed.  
“I don’t want to argue like an old married couple.” Hunk decided to jump straight to the point, not wanting to have to bicker with Lance for hours over something he knows is wrong. He knows it’s against the law, but he just loves the outside world too much to just stop so abruptly.  
“Neither do I.” Lance confessed, retiring to the ratty old couch in the corner of the living room. It was soft, stuffed full of cotton and made of fabric but being covered up by a thick plastic wrapping to make it waterproof. The options they had for furniture were limited- it was either the hard seashells for beds and recliners, or just fabric covered completely in plastic to ensure no water leaked in. Hunk was amazed his ancestors were so incredibly focused on making sure everybody, guppy or senior, knew that the surface was forbidden instead of engineering better furniture and living conditions.  
Nevertheless, Hunk joined him on the sofa. 

It felt almost like an intervention at this point, Lance singling him out and speaking to him like he was a scared cat that would run away at the first sign of hostility. 

“We've been best friends since we were guppies.” Lance starts gently, laying down the first fact like the concrete for the heavy bricks of truth he’d have to drop later.  
Hunk just nodded.  
“I’ve known you for so, so, so long.” Lance put rising emphasis on each ‘so’ he said. “And I guess I’m just afraid that somebody is going to find out about it. And I don’t want you to have to endure the punishment for them finding out.” Hunk could tell Lance was genuinely worried. For a few moments, he actually debated stopping.  
Then he remembered the cries from earlier and the blur of color, and he snapped back to his previous mindset.  
“I’m sorry, Lance.” Hunk said, and he really did mean it. 

And that was all he said in that conversation. 

He explained later his reasoning- the fact that he’d gone up so many times before and had never been caught once, or even been questioned on the matter by anybody else except Pidge and Lance, whom he had told himself.  
Then, he told Lance about the blur.  
About the humans. 

He debated that maybe, once he found the person who had created that blur and knew that they were safe, he would stop.  
But the cries they emitted had haunted him since he returned home, replaying over and over and over again in his mind until he couldn’t even think straight. 

He was on a mission now. 

He needed to find that person. 

And he thought that after the explanation, Lance understood. And maybe, he was even coming around to the idea. It was obvious he still wasn’t fond of his best friend being in danger constantly, but he was more open to letting Hunk investigate.  
One day, Lance would be okay with the life Hunk had chosen for himself. 

Hunk knew he would. 

~~~~~~

A few days had passed since Hunk had found a safe time to go back up to the surface. 

It ended up being in the middle of their day cycle, right after Hunk had eaten his lunch from one of the more popular fish restaurants in the city. It used to be his family’s own diner, but recently it was converted to welcome more employees and expand the reach of the restaurant. It was a sample of Hunk’s childhood, and his stress seemed to float away with the scent of the grill.  
Which made it the perfect place to visit before he tried to comfort the crying figure. 

Maybe they wouldn’t be there today, or maybe they wouldn’t be crying. It all came down to Hunk’s luck and timing.

And he had a little thing to help him on the luck end. 

He had never been superstitious, he always thought that it was silly to believe a saying, item or action would bring luck or misfortune. But today, he was willing to put his control into a single strip of seaweed. It was exactly 5.67 inches long, as the superstition read.  
The exact reasoning behind such a legend was unclear- one of their ancestors had brought the tale down to their lake, in a small, new built and thriving town that eventually evolved into the city Hunk had grown up in and lived his entire life. It was an odd item to hold in such importance- there was an incredible surplus of seaweed at the bottom of their lake. The thing that made the item difficult to obtain was that it had to be naturally grown to measure at exactly 5.67 inches. No more, no less, and if a piece of seaweed was simply cut to be 5.67 inches, it was told that two years of bad luck would be cast upon those that attempted to trick the tale to their favor.  
If a piece of seaweed was simply found on the Sandy floor, and it perfectly measured 5.67 inches naturally, then the finder's greatest wish would be granted when the finder held the seaweed to their heart and silently thought of their wish. If the wish was told to anybody, directly or indirectly, or just being spoken aloud, two years of bad luck would rain upon whoever spoke of the wish to a single soul. 

The legend is quite cruel, in all seriousness. If you don't get everything exactly right, it results in a bad luck curse. Maybe that's why Hunk always hated superstitions- because he didn't want to end up wanting to get luck but ending up with misfortune instead. 

But he wanted to try, at least this one time. Maybe it wouldn't help, and it was just some stupid tale meant to strike fear or happiness or hope into merfolk's hearts. 

So he held the seaweed to his chest, right where his heart was beating, and gave his wish before heading up to the surface.

'Please, let me see them again. Let them be there.’ 

Hunk's mind was running all over the place, with the exception of the wish. The wish was clear in his head, and he was definitely sure that the seaweed could be able to take his wish in and, hopefully, grant it. 

It's stupid, but Hunk will take all the luck he can get to make sure he finds the crying person again. He needs to, or he's not sure he'll ever get the distant sound of sobs out of his mind from that one fateful day. 

Hunk was hopeful when he reached the surface. 

Even more so when he hear the same crying sound he'd heard before. He thought for a second that maybe it was his mind playing a trick on him, playing the track over from his past memory of the sound. 

But he could locate the source- not his mind, not himself, not under the surface- but right at the broken pier.  
The pier was an obvious choice, of course. It overlooked the lake, didn't get your tail or human clothing all covered in dirt and sand from sitting on it. The rusty nails were a downside, but in a secluded forest, it was about the best you could get. 

He swan slowly over to the source, not wanting to frighten the human by revealing that he was a merfolk too early in their meeting. He could keep his tail hidden under the murky water, approaching then softly and quietly, not disturbing nor being too kind to raise a suspicion. 

They came into better view as Hunk grew closer, the blonde areas parted in the middle and grew off to the side, giving the appearance of pigtails. The red blur was still present, and it didn't become any clearer the closer Hunk got. It was just a giant brick of red in the center of the painting, like a mishap had occured in the art studio and color palettes had been mixed together. 

The cries were louder as he swam, the light blonde became definitely defined as hair, while the red blur must have been some kind of clothing item. 

And with just about eight feet to go until Hunk reached them, they turned their head that was previously facing down the river to lock eyes with Hunk. 

Speaking of her eyes…

They were like an oasis. They sparkled in the little ray of sunshine the clearing got, light violet orbs giving light where sun could never reach. In between the evergreens, under the water sitting still just below her bare feet. Her fingernails appeared to be bitten down to the stub, pale cheeks blushing a hard red as Hunk looked her over from head to toe.  
She was wearing a deep red sweatshirt that hung down to her knees almost, with tiny black biker shorts underneath. She had a dolphin eating in the left ear, the light blue coloring fading and revealing the gold plating underneath, while her other ear seemed to have a simple jem right on the lobe. 

He'd never really seen a human this close before. 

It was incredible. 

And she hadn't run away yet, so that was a good sign as well. 

She was, however, focusing in those delicate violet eyes on the seaweed still in Hunk's hand and the metallic golden tail swishing gently under the water.  
It was just visible by where she was sitting- one or two more inches away and she was unsure if she would have seen it. 

But she did see it. And in the end, that's all that really mattered. 

"You...you-uh…" She spoke in a prominent british accent, cheekbones rising and falling as she pronounced the syllables out.  
"You...have a tail." She stated, casually, as if at a book club and monotony pointing out her favorite part of the book in a discussion period.

Hunk gave an awkward smile in response. 

"Please don't...uh, tell anyone." Hunk managed to say in between his panic, trying to keep a straight face. She looked just as scared as him- and he was absolutely terrified.  
"I...won't." Her hand was shaking just a tad, as if what Hunk said was some sort of threat.  
"I'm not going to hurt you." He promised after he noticed what she was doing, in an attempt to calm both his nerves and hers. 

She let out a long sigh of relief at that. 

"Okay, yeah. I won't either. I'm sorry, I've just never...even expected to see something like...uh…" She rambled and trailed off, finding that words were hard to use at the moment.  
"It's fine." Hunk said, only a little bit hurt. He couldn't blame her at all, really. If he had never seen a merfolk before and was suddenly exposed, he'd be screaming in terror. She was honestly handling it all extremely well.  
"My...my name is Romelle." She said, cheeks turning a light shade of coral pink as she held her hand out for Hunk to shake.  
"Hunk." He supplied, taking Romelle's hand in his own. It was warm, and dry, skin feeling far too forgein in his hand. She either needed lotion stat, or this was just how all human skin felt.  
Either way, it was odd. 

But it was also magical. 

Romelle said she needed to go somewhere. But she'd be back tomorrow. Same time, same place. 

Same her. Same him. 

He gripped the seaweed tightly as she disappeared into the trees. 

Maybe he'd try lucky-charm items more often now. 

~~~~~~~

He goes up to the surface at the same time and same place every day that passes. 

Romelle is always there, just as she promises. 

It felt nice- having somebody actually there for him, always waiting patiently for his comfort.  
She continued to cry. But she also started to talk, started to tell about herself. How she's an artist on the side, but works at a restaurant full-time. Line cook, and she believes a promotion is coming her way soon. 

And one day, after she trusts Hunk and Hunk trusts her, she tells of her brothers. 

Well, just one brother. And his boyfriend. 

And how one's in a coma, and the other hasn't come home for months. 

Her brother, Keith, had fallen in love with a man who enlisted in the military. They exchanged letters, and often Romelle would sneak into Keith's room at night to read the love letters and wish for a love like theirs one day. 

Anyway, Shiro- Keith's boyfriend- had been at a base for rest before going back into the field. A raid had taken their base off guard, and Shiro had been seriously injured. 

He fell into a coma. Keith left as soon as Shiro was moved to a hospital in Washington- apparently, that's a long way from where the lake was- and Keith hasn't returned for four months.  
Romelle grew up as an orphan. Keith was her only friend. They went to foster homes together, only being consoled by one another in their darkest hours.  
They were roommates after college. Romelle was the first to know about Keith's sexuality, the first to know about Shiro. 

And now, she felt like she didn't know anything anymore. All Keith did was send her a text every week saying he was okay.  
She knew he wasn't. She knew he probably looked terrible, hair unwashed and messy, bags under his eyes prominent. 

She just wanted her brother back. 

The sweatshirt was his. She had washed it a few times, so his scent was faded slightly, but she could still catch it. He had left it behind accidentally instead of taking it in his quickly packed suitcase before he left for Washington. 

Romelle was happy for that fact. 

But it didn't completely heal her wounds. It wasn't his hugs, his poorly written jokes or his long hair that she could braid and he'd do in return. 

It wasn't him. 

He was a ghost to her, at this point. 

Hunk nodded solemnly in clear understanding. He knew the feeling of drifting away from the ones you loved. Those who'd been there your entire life suddenly start to hold less and less happiness in their hands.  
It stings. 

He couldn't fix anything. Couldn't make her pain fade, couldn't wash the sadness from Romelle's soul like a wave destroying a message written in the sand. 

But Romelle was just as happy to be supported by Hunk's comfort. 

And Hunk was especially glad she had let him in to her secrets and her heart. 

He wouldn't say he was in love, just a little crush was all. Nothing extreme. She didn't take up all of his thoughts, only a vast majority. 

Lance would call that love. 

Maybe it was love. 

Maybe he was in love with the human who cried on the pier. 

~~~~~~~

Two months pass. 

And everyday they meet at the old pier and talk. 

Lance knew about her. Hunk had explained all of her features with sparkles in his eyes, telling Lance how nice and amazing and gorgeous she was. 

Lance still didn't approve of him travelling to the surface. 

But Hunk thought that he was starting to understand, at the very least. He was on the road to being okay with the situation. 

He just needed more time, Hunk was sure of it. 

Hunk had finally decided that yes, he was in love with Romelle. He wasn't sure when, or how, or if it was ever going to work out in his favor, so he kept his feelings hidden. 

Mostly. 

Sometimes, he held her hand. She never questioned him about it, even looked happy about it. Maybe Hunk was imagining the grin she always tried to hide when they had any physical contact. 

He'd be lying if he said he didn't dream of her. Most of his dreams involved him as a human so they could live together without the hassle of being separated by land and sea. 

Romelle showed up one day, later than usual, with the basket in hand. 

She had brought a picnic. 

Just for them. 

It was stocked full with seaweed covered fish- Romelle looked absolutely disgusted when she pulled it out and handed it to Hunk. 

But he was more than grateful. She had not only remembered when he had went on a tangent about how seaweed wrapped fish sandwiches were his favorite. His mother used to make them for him nearly every night. She would make up a giant batch just to make her son happy. 

He loved his mother dearly, but the love he felt for Romelle was completely different. It was about on par with every other love he felt in strength, but it felt different and forgein. He'd dated a few merfolk back down in the city. He thought he loved them, but they never gave him the feeling he had now. It was magical, brilliant and dazzling. It lit up his whole world and blinded him as he stepped out of the darkness and into her light. 

She smiled when Hunk scarfed the sandwiches down. It was a different taste from what he was used to, but it wasn't bad. Quite the opposite. 

This time, she held his hand first. 

And those starry eyes looked into his, violet irises swirling with untold feelings and hidden emotions.  
She blinked, and Hunk panicked that he'd never see her beauty again. That it was locked away forever, that he had seen all he was allowed.  
They were reopened a second later, as her lips slowly parted. 

"Hunk...I…" She trailed off, getting choked up on her own words. Her brain was racked with feelings and stress, cheekbones creasing gently.  
"I..I love you." She finished, sweeping her vision to the side dramatically to avoid eye contact, like she was expecting rejection to slap her square in the face. 

Hunk gasped. 

She sniffled, a familiar sound, as if she was about to burst into tears. She seemed to have believed the gasp was a clear rejection of her love, and he now hated her. 

"Romelle-" He started to say, wanted to tell her he loved her too, that it wasn't just her, but his throat closed up and the words were lost.  
She started frantically packing up the basket, wrapping being crumbled by the force in her hands. Tears dripped behind her closed eyelids, lashes fluttering delicately. 

"I-I love you too…" he spit out just as she started to get up and leave. 

She whipped her head back around, mouth wide open in pure shock that her love was requited.  
Hunk was just as shocked that his love had been returned by such a beautiful and kind individual. She was perfect. 

And she loved him. 

She sniffled once again, using the back of her hand to wipe away from her cheek before it flowed down to her chin. 

"Same time?" She finally said, standing up with the basket in hand. 

"Same place." Hunk replied with a smile. 

She nodded happily with more tears forming in the corners of her eyes, and Hunk hoped it was from happiness.  
It seemed so, as she skipped off the pier and into the dense forest and fading into the green. 

~~~~~~~

 

When he got home, Lance was sitting on the couch. 

He stayed silent, unmoving, as Hunk swam over slowly. 

"You really love her, huh?" Lance finally spoke after letting out a breath he'd obviously been holding for forever.  
"Yeah." Hunk replied without skipping a beat. "She said she loves me too." Hunk didn't mean to sound cocky, but he realized that it definitely came off that way. 

Lance smiled. Just barely, but it was there. 

"I'll let up." Lance said. "I won't judge you for the whole "dangerously going up to the surface just for a girl" thing anymore. Because you're happy. You're so much more...you. When we were kids, you were so bubbly and excited about anything." 

"Except sea spiders. And pointy shells." Hunk supplied. 

"Yeah. Except those." Lance looked like he wanted to cry and laugh at the same time. "My point is, that all kinda...just left when we grew up. I was worried about you. Too worried, it seems, because going up to the surface actually helped you much more than it hurt. Sure, there's risks, but your happiness is worth it. I've finally managed to realize that." 

Lance looked at him with a sad expression.  
"Can you forgive me? For being such a terrible friend?" Lance asked with glassy eyes.  
"Can you forgive me for being an even worse friend?" Hunk responded, eyes stinging with unshed tears. "I worried you beyond belief. Literally. Your nails used to be so much longer, and you've nearly bitten them down to the bone again." Hunk pointed out, to which Lance stared down at his nails in horror.  
"I have not!" Lance argued, finding the statement terrible but knowing deep down inside that Hunk was right.  
"Right. Anyway, I should have told you how happy she actually made me. I should have been there for you, instead of leaving you down in the sand with no explanation." Hunk finished with a gulp. 

Lance sniffled, then held his arms out for Hunk to swim into. 

He gladly did. 

"Friends?" Hunk asked as Lance held him far too tightly.  
"We never weren't." Lance answered as Hunk swore he felt his ribs crack into a million pieces. 

~~~~~~~

The days dragged on. 

Months passed. Even a year. 

He'd known Romelle for a whole year. 

The year was probably the best of his entire life. Romelle was a giant ray of sunshine that gave light everywhere she went, even when she was so upset she couldn't do anything but cry. Hunk knew her in those moments, and he knew that her tears were what made her human. If she was always happy, she wouldn't be much of a human at all- all merfolk cried, so it made sense that sadness made a human as well. 

One day, Hunk came up to the surface before she had arrived. He heard a tree branch fall in the forest just outside the pier, and soon Romelle was zooming into full view. 

Completely full view. Far too fast. 

"Hunk!” She practically screamed out his name as she ran down the creaky docks, the Hunk feared the termite-bitten wood wouldn’t hold her up.  
And God, she was smiling so wide, she looked so different from when Hunk usually saw her, her frown erased and tears long gone. But he barely had time to observe her beauty when he realized what might happen.  
“Hey, Romelle, slow down!” He warned as she didn’t make an effort to stop or even reduce her running speed as she grew closer and closer to the edge of the plank and into the water. He was used to its temperature, as his body adapted to whatever water temperature was needed, but Hunk wasn’t sure how hot or cold water had to get before it started harming humans.  
His tail started gently swishing the water below as the anxiety set in, and before he knew it, she was jumping straight into the ocean below, still clad in the oversized red sweatshirt and black sweatpants. At least she was barefoot and her hair was tied up into a loose bun, so her shoes and hair wouldn't be soaking wet when she returned back on land.  
His calming bubble was easily popped, however, when he realized that she was going to plummet into the water.  
Out of nothing but pure instinct and the absence of common sense, he reached his arms out seconds before Romelle landed in his grip, causing a giant splash as everything below her waist settled into the water. 

"Shiro's awake!" She yelled, and Hunk tried to shush her but couldn't bring himself to do it. She was too happy, ecstatic, and he couldn't stand to pop her bubble just because his ears were about to suffer. 

"Keith's coming home with him in two weeks. Two weeks! Can you believe that! So, so, so, so, soon! It's been a full year and a half Hunk! A full year and a half since I last saw him!" She rambled on, excited beyond belief. Hunk wasn't sure if the water was at the right temperature for her body, but she made no indication that it wasn't okay, so Hunk assumed she'd be fine. 

Suddenly, her breath ghosted over Hunk's lips. She was panting, her forehead glistening with sweat from how fast she was running. 

She was trying to catch her breath, and Hunk knew he shouldn't…

But he leaned forward and kissed her. 

Her lips tasted fruity. Maybe she had a snack before coming over, or maybe her lip gloss had a special flavor. He did notice her lips were especially glossy today. Maybe she'd been planning to finally kiss him today.  
Her hand was damp with sweat, and it was shaking when Hunk reached over to grip her hand in his. 

They kissed for a while. Hunk still held Romelle up, as she made no effort to break free or kick her legs or swim on her own.  
It felt nice holding her, so Hunk didn't really mind at all. 

When they finally pulled away, they were both at a complete loss for words.  
Hunk's lips tasted like berry fields after having connected them with Romelle's. 

"I had apple lip gloss on." She admitted.  
"It tastes good."  
"I'm glad you think so. I'll have to bring you an apple one day." She said, happy with her accomplishment of introducing her boyfriend to a new land food.  
"Maybe I'll even bring you a pie. My brother makes the absolute best apple cinnamon pies. I'll have him make you one." She said.  
"That's not really necessary." Hunk tried to say, but she dismissed him immediately.  
"He'll want to repay you for keeping me okay throughout this whole thing." She said, basically informing him no matter how hard he tried, the pie was getting delivered to him.  
"Are you going to...bring them here?" Hunk asked, suddenly very nervous about how many people can know about him and merfolk in general.  
"They won't tell. They're both great at secrets." Romelle promised, before starting to squirm in Hunk's hold. "Now, can you help me back up?" She asked sweetly, batting her eyelashes as she did so. 

Hunk smiled and did as she asked. 

~~~~~~

Two weeks later, she brought them both to the pier. 

One was taller than the other- broad shoulders that took up far too much space, white tank top showing off a thin layer of scattered scars. He was missing an arm, the cut off ending at just under the shoulder. The stump was wrapped cautiously, with more detailed paid than really needed. His hair was white as snow. The shorter one had long, silky ebony locks, trailing down to his shoulders in a braid. He was carrying a pie dish that smelled amazing, even from a distance. 

Romelle was dressed in bright clothes, and the shorter one was wearing the sweatshirt he was so used to seeing slumped off Romelle's shoulders. It actually fit Keith perfectly, ending just off where his sweatpants started. 

"Shiro, Hunk, Hunk, Shiro." Romelle pointed to the one with white hair, who waved shyly with his remaining hand.  
"Keith, Hunk, Hunk, Keith." She then moved on to the one in the red sweatshirt, who set the pie down slowly on the very edge of the pier. 

The pie smelled amazing up close too. It was sprinkled with a little bit of brown specks, which Hunk had come to know as cinnamon. The crust was a perfect golden brown on the edges, perfectly cooked and executed. He had no idea where Keith had learned to bake, but he must have learned from someone who was amazing at their work. 

"Thank you for taking care of her when I couldn't." Keith said quietly, whispering it as he placed the pie tin down.  
"It was truly my pleasure." Hunk replied with a heartfelt smile. 

Keith didn't say anything more, he just said something to Romelle then disappeared back into the forest. 

Romelle gulped as she approached Hunk, setting the pie behind her. 

"How are we going to make this work out?" She said out of the blue, face twisting into fear and sadness.  
"I- are you...feeling okay?" Hunk asked, being so caught off guard by the suddenness of the thought.  
Romelle sighed.  
"I've just...been thinking. How are we going to be dating like this? Do we just meet here? I have to go back to Uni now that Keith's back. I won't always be available at the same time. I love you Hunk. I really do. I'm just unsure of how our future is going to be." She spilled her heart out right in front of her, eyes looking glossy with tears forming in the corners. 

Hunk took her hand in his. It was familiar now.  
Their love was familiar to him now. 

"No matter what, I will always love you." Hunk promised. "We can make a schedule. Maybe not visits everyday, but a few times a week. I'll know when to get here, because we can plan ahead of time." Hunk's quick thinking made Romelle's face light up.  
"That...could work." She said with a smile on her face. 

She stood up, brushed the dust off her pastel blue skirt, and pushed the pie in his direction. 

"I love you." She said as she faded into the leaves of the evergreens. 

"I love you. Forever and always." Hunk yelled back just before she went out of earshot. 

Their love was bittersweet, but it was strong. 

All the emotions Hunk felt was all because of the day he heard the human cry on the pier.

**Author's Note:**

> [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/Maximoffs_love) || [Tumblr](https://galrafloofandlove.tumblr.com)!


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